Flute Accessories for Aspiring Flute Players

OK, you've got your flute. You've got music and a teacher. What else do you need to become a great flute player?

Well, hours of practice of course. But that's not all. There are many accessories that are really essential to good flute playing, for the new student and professional alike.

Flute on Marble Vase 2a
by Misticmedia at Zazzle.com

OK, yeah, I know this guy looks pretty weird! Maybe you don't need to practice in a dusty old attic like he does (or wear such odd clothes), but this guy has the right idea - he's standing up and playing music from a music stand.

If you want to learn to play your flute well, you've got to have your music at the right height and right angle. Just putting it on the table or bed beside you doesn't encourage good posture! You'll never be able to get good tone if you can't breathe right and can't develop good embouchure because you're holding your flute at the wrong angle just to see the music.

The Flute Player
by Jean-Louis Ernest Meissonier
Buy at Allposters.com

Well this flute player has a beautiful bright sun shining on her music, no problem here! But life isn't always so easy. Many times it's a bit dark, and you can't read the music easily. What you need then is a light for your music stand.

The Flute Player
Buy From Art.com

Whether you're just playing on your own or in a group, a band, or a marching band, you need to be able to play in time. That's where the metronome comes in. Every piece was written to be played at a certain tempo, and without a metronome it's almost impossible to keep that speed consistent while practicing.

And it's also important to play in tune. If you get used to hearing yourself play a piece sharp or flat it's hard to adjust your playing to the group later. So you need to a tuner to tell you the correct pitch.

Flutist II
Buy From Art.com

You may find that it is difficult to hold your flute and play all the notes, especially if you joined that marching band! Maybe you just have a hard time holding the flute at the right angle to reach the keys. Or perhaps you're having trouble playing trills, or playing the third high octave, because you can't use the key with your thumb and keep the flute stable at the same time. To avoid such problems you need a Cobra Flute Support.

This ingenious little device is worn like a ring on your left forefinger. It's flexible so it adjusts to your finger and the support adjusts to the best angle to hold your flute securely.

Image of Cobra support with flute
from Misticmedia Products.

The Cobra support for flute is like a ring with a "head" that provides a secure place for the flute to balance.

COBRA A is the standard version with a single ring. The ring comes in black, silver, or gold color; all with black "head" and "tail."

COBRA B has a double ring for extra support and is designed to make playing the flute more comfortable over long practice sessions. The "heads" and "tails" are all black, but the ring can be black, silver or gold colored, and this style even comes with a pretty pink or purple colored ring, among many other colors!

All styles come in 3 sizes: small, medium and large.

Buy a Cobra from Misticmedia at Artfire.com or Blujay.com

You know how important your lips are in playing the flute. Dry cracked lips do not good embouchure make. Maybe you've tried various Chapstick type products, but they make the lips too slippery - not good. And that layer of waxy stuff just takes away all the sensitivity. What you really need are soft moisturized lips. The Mary Kay Satin Lips set achieves exactly that!

The mask is used first to remove the dry, dead skin from the outer layer of the lips. Without doing this, the moisturizer cannot penetrate sufficiently to provide a lasting effect. The mask is gritty and feels a bit strange since lips are sensitive. Don't worry, it's all good. Then you apply the moisturizer, which feels really good, and the lips get so soft. And the best part is they don't dry out for hours.

So you are all set to play flute with perfect lips for as long as you need. You can always bring the moisturizer with you for a touch up, it's not greasy so no slippery lips!

Satin Lips Set from Mary Kay

Maybe you don't have a golden flute (we can't all be James Galway) but you do want to keep it clean. Shining and bright is so much nicer than all dull, smudged, and tarnished looking.

I'm convinced that a bright shining flute is happier, and so the music that comes out is better. Well, yes, you have to practice to actually play good music! But putting effort into cleaning and taking care of your flute is part of the investment in being a flute player. So be serious about the cleaning too!

Flute Angel 1
by Misticmedia at Zazzle.

Your flute is delicate, and quite expensive! So make sure you have a good case for it, and store it carefully especially when you are going to bring it with you somewhere.

Your flute will have its own case, designed to fit it perfectly. Take care of the case, so that it will take care of your flute!


Flute Seller
Buy at AllPosters.com

Copyright © Jennifer P. Tanabe, 2009.
This page was created on September 26, 2009 and is the property of jptanabe (Jennifer P. Tanabe) and Squidoo, LLC. Please do not copy my material!